Two years after MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company sold the container ship MSC Giovanna (built 1987) to Niki Shipping and bareboat chartered it back, the 2,098-teu vessel is heading for the recycling beach at Alang.
The MSC Giovanna is one of four container ships reported as sold for recycling this week as the expected pace of scrapping in the sector picks up from a dribble into a steady stream.
Data in the S&P Global International Ships Register indicates that ownership of the MSC Giovanna was transferred back to MSC last year, although this is not reflected in other maritime databases.
Regardless of whether MSC or Niki sold the ship, brokers said it has been gone for green recycling at a Hong Kong Convention-compliant yard after a stringent vetting process similar to that used when MSC’s 1,879-teu container ship MSC Floriana (built 1986) was sold for recycling earlier in February.
The extra cost for the recycler when carrying out such stringent green recycling was reflected in the price of $500 per ldt, or $5.6m, that was paid for the ship.
Three other container ships reported sold for recycling over the past week obtained higher prices that were more in line with levels offered by Alang and Chattogram-based recyclers over the past few weeks.
Transworld Group of Dubai was said to have sold the 1,584-teu OEL Shravan (built 1998) to cash buyers on an “as is” basis in Colombo for $585 per ldt, or $4.3m, for redelivery to Chattogram.
Sinokor Merchant Marine's 1,608-teu Xiumei Shanghai (built 1997) was reported sold on a “delivered full subcontinent” basis for $620 per ldt, or about $4.6m. The price reflects the significant quantity of bunker fuel remaining on board the vessel.
Indonesia’s Tanto Intim Lines has sold its 256-teu Tanto Sentosa (built 1984) to cash buyers on an “as is” basis in Pasir Gudang, Malaysia, for $490 per ldt, or $1.3m.
The container ship demolition sales reported bring the number of boxships sold for recycling since the beginning of the year to 15 vessels, mostly in the smaller size segments. Brokers said that more deals are being lined up.
